Manchester’s role in Theresa May’s mental health plans

There has been much interest in Theresa May’s plans to do more to help those particularly young people, with mental health conditions.

In her speech at the Charity Commission, the Prime Minister announced a number of pledges including a new review of employment and mental health and expansion of digital services.

She also launched a revised National Suicide Prevention Strategy for England.

Professor Louis Appleby from The University of Manchester, is Chair of the National Suicide Prevention Strategy Advisory Group. Professor Nav Kapur, also from Manchester, sits on the Group and chaired the NICE guidelines on the management of self-harm.

The revised strategy highlights the research conducted by the National Confidential Inquiry and specifically the 10 key components of safety in mental health care that the NHS should be working towards.

A key part of Theresa May’s announcement is a revised national suicide prevention strategy, aiming to reduce what she called the “shocking reality” of 13 deaths by suicide every day in England. Manchester has played a major role in the new strategy – it highlights our research on suicide and self-harm and we have advised the government on what actions should now be taken

Professor Louis Appleby

The strategy also refers to the team’s research on suicide in children and young people, published in May 2016, as well as their work on self-harm.

Professor Louis Appleby said: “It’s an important moment when the Prime Minister makes mental health a personal priority – not only the need to reform services but as an issue of social justice.

“A key part of Theresa May’s announcement is a revised national suicide prevention strategy, aiming to reduce what she called the “shocking reality” of 13 deaths by suicide every day in England.

“Manchester has played a major role in the new strategy – it highlights our research on suicide and self-harm and we have advised the government on what actions should now be taken.

Addition Reporting By MUN Reporter:

In 2015 the video below was created for National Suicide Prevention Summit and was arranged as an online webinar for health professionals with renowned psychiatry Professor Nav Kapur entitled: Practical solutions for preventing suicide in healthcare and other settings.

Professor Kapur is the Head of Research at the Centre for Suicide Prevention at the University of Manchester and is a member of the UK Department of Health’s National Suicide Prevention Strategy advisory group.

Our Aims: About Us

To support users and ex-users of psychiatric services in the Manchester area. The organisation provides a forum for services users to have a bona fide say in planning and provision of mental health services.

Protesters in King’s Lynn fight against mental health service cuts

Protesters took to the streets of King’s Lynn to voice their anger at what they described as “continuous” cutbacks to mental health services in west Norfolk.

Mental health cuts protest

A protest march against cuts to mental health services and the Fermoy Unit at the QEH took place in King's Lynn town centre. Picture: Matthew Usher.

More than 100 campaigners marched from The Walks through the town centre before finishing outside the Majestic Cinema.

Peter Smith, former parliamentary candidate for south-west Norfolk said: “We are in the fight of our lives here.”

The protest was triggered by the Fermoy Unit, an in-patient NHS facility in Lynn for mental health, which campaigners say faces an uncertain future. The unit was briefly closed to new admissions earlier this month, but reopened last week, albeit with fewer beds.

Mr Smith said: “In my lifetime we have never had to fight like this, but what is the alternative?”

But Debbie White, director of operations for Norfolk at the Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust, said there were now no plans to axe the Fermoy Unit.

She added: “It is right that mental health services should be valued and funded on the same level as acute health services, and it is understandable people feel passionate about the Fermoy Unit remaining open.”

Labour party activist Jo Rust insisted the issue would not disappear. She said: “They have been talking about closing it for a long time. We will fight and we will not let them do that.”

Beth Anthony, 18 of Dersingham, said: “We are here to protest against the continuous cuts to the mental health service, we think it’s unacceptable. My younger brother suffers from poor mental health and has to travel to London... That is to the detriment of my family because we have to pay for him to go down by train every single month.”